You Made Me Believe
by Im Always Sorry in the Morning
Summary: Sequel to Just Might Make Me Believe. Will everything they've gone through finally pay off? Is is possible for then to find happy ever after?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Don't own any of it, if I did this really would be happening!!!**

**AN: This is a sequel to **_**Just Might Make Me Believe**_**. This story picks up five to six months after the last one ended. Ok now remember from the previous story, Christina and Burke got married and the interns are now residents. And in this story Derek's dad never died, I'm not really sure if it's ever been said in the show if he did or not, so when you see his mom refer to her husband it's Derek's dad. Please read, review and enjoy!!**

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_Love makes the heart happy, it makes you, as a person, want to be happy. It permeates through your mind and fills you with thoughts of that one person who can truly make you weak in the knees. Love is a feeling that overtakes the body inch by inch until it is satisfied with its work, good or bad. It's one of the most complex sensations that a human being can experience; it is full of emotions that are twisted with all these desires, which are then contorted with reverence and admiration. True love is one of the most remarkable feelings. No one knows when or how hard they will fall, because the day you fall in love is a day you never want to forget. No one truly knows what love is until they have fallen. _

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Four years ago their lives changed for the better. Four years ago they realized that the words 'true love' actually did exist. Four years ago they walked into a bar not expecting to meet the person of their dreams, the person they were meant to spend the rest of their lives with. And now, here they stood, in the same exact place in which they had first laid eyes on each other. So much had happened in this bar…

"_So what's your story?"_

"_I don't have a story; I'm just a girl in a bar."_

"_I'm just a guy in a bar."_

That had been the conversation that had started their whirlwind romance; a romance that neither one had planned on; a romance that blossomed into not just a one night stand, but a lifetime.

"_Hi, I'm Derek Shepherd." _

"_What are you doing?"_

"_We met at this bar, remember? We met and we, um, you said I'm just a girl, and I said I'm just a guy, and we started this thing. We started this thing. You didn't know anything about me, __the good, the bad, the wife. You didn't even know my name. You didn't know me. I want you to know me. I want to start over from the beginning. So, hi, I'm Derek Shepherd."_

_"You walked away, and now it's too late. There's too much water under the thing, or whatever."_

_"Meredith... Please."_

_"Hi, I'm Meredith Grey."_ _She hesitated. _

_"Very nice to meet you Meredith."_

_"Nice to meet you too."_

That was the conversation that rekindled their romance. At first she had been unsure of what to do, he had been the one that wanted space and time to think, and there he was, begging her for a fresh start.

"_Seriously…" she asked in shock._

"_Meredith, we met in this very spot four years ago and I fell in love with you the moment I laid eyes on you. You are the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with, have kids with and grow old with. Mer, you are the love of my life. Will you marry me?"_

"_Seriously…"_

"_Seriously."_

"_Oh my god, Derek…yes!"_

"_Yes?"_

"_Yes of course I'll marry you."_

And that was the conversation that brought them to where they stood today. They were getting married, in less than twenty four hours they would be Mr. and Mrs. Derek Shepherd. Everything they had ever dreamed of was unfolding right in front of their eyes. They had completed their dream house six months ago, had successfully planned an extravagant wedding, had talked about having two or three kids and had all sorts of plans for their future.

"This is it…" he said tilting his head to look deep into her eyes. That was the look, the look that always made her go weak in the knees, the look that proved to her that this was in fact forever.

"This is it." she replied smiling back at him before taking a sip of her drink.

"You guys nervous?" Joe asked as he walked up to them wiping off the bar.

They both looked at him and turned their heads to look at each other, giving one another a reassuring smile and replying a simple, "No" simultaneously. Joe smiled to himself, he had seen a lot of people get together in his bar, but he had never in his entire life seen two people more in love.

"Look I'm sure you are already sick of the speeches and the toasts and you only have more coming tomorrow night, but you guys are meant to be together. I've never seen so much love radiate between two people. You're the real thing, the thing that people wish for their entire lives. And I could say I wish you happiness, but I don't have to because you have already found that. You two will have a great life together."

"Thanks Joe." Derek smiled at him and returned his gaze to Meredith. "And thanks for everything you are doing for us tomorrow. We didn't expect you to do that."

"Yeah well every wedding, especially yours, needs an open bar. I'm just afraid that with the friends you two have I'll run out of alcohol in the first thirty minutes," he chuckled, "but it's worth it, you two are like family to me." He said walking away.

"So, what are you going to do your last night as a bachelorette?" Derek asked raising an eyebrow.

"God only knows, I can't imagine. Christina and Izzie have been at the house for…an hour now."

"You let them into our house by themselves; I hope we still have a house."

"Shut up," she said slapping him on the arm, "they're probably just hiding the stripper or something."

"Excuse me…" Derek said almost spitting out his beer.

"Haha…gotcha." She winked at him.

"Uh, you are in so much trouble." He quickly leaned over and started tickling her sides causing her to go into heaps of laughter. He stopped tickling her and just held her in his arms for a while.

"I love you."

"I love you too.

They sat and talked for a little while about the ceremony and their honeymoon. Then they decided to go their separate ways. They told Joe goodnight and walked hand in hand outside to their cars. Meredith was heading back to their house and Derek was heading to Mark's apartment.

"I will see you tomorrow night." She whispered, leaning into him and placing a feather kiss on his nose.

"I don't know if I can go without you for that long."

"It will be worth the wait though…" she said giving him a seductive smile.

"Why Miss Grey are you trying to turn me on?"

She wrapped her arms around his neck pulling him into a deep, passionate kiss. Their mouths collided and he opened his allowing her tongue access, causing a moan to come somewhere from deep inside of him. As they started to pull apart she took his lower lip and sucked on it for a second before breathlessly pulling away.

"No, I'm just giving you a glimpse of tomorrow night." She winked at him.

"Hmm yeah…alright well uh…I'm going to go because the sooner I go the sooner I see you tomorrow. I love you and I cannot wait until you come walking down that aisle."

"I love you too."

He opened the car door for her and kissed her one last time before watching her drive off. Only a few more hours and all of their dreams would be coming true.

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"Hello…anyone home?" Meredith said entering her house.

"In the kitchen…"

The kitchen was one of Meredith's favorite rooms of the new house. It had black hardwood floors, white cabinets and dark red walls. There was a big island in the middle of the room where the stove was located and lots and lots of counter space around it. She walked into a room full of women. Christina, Callie, Nancy and Kathleen, two of Derek's sisters, were sitting around the island drinking wine and talking. Lacy and Madeline, Derek's other two sisters, were at the kitchen table talking to Izzie about what sounded to be like the wedding. Trish, Meredith's future mother-in-law was talking to Lexie next to the fireplace. Derek's family had made Meredith feel so welcome, after her meeting with Nancy two years ago she hadn't been sure what to expect. But to her amazement she was immediately accepted into the family.

"Wow it's a good thing we have six bedrooms and a guest house." Meredith joked as she walked into the kitchen.

Christina got up and handed Meredith a glass of wine, "Mcfamily is so much better than Burke's, I hate you."

"You like them?"

"Yea, I love them. I would kill for in-laws like these!"

"Yea, I'm quite the lucky girl."

After a few more hours of talking and telling embarrassing stories of everyone's internships and residencies, they decided to head to bed. Derek's sisters were staying in the guest house which had four bedrooms and was located right next to the house. Everybody else had their own bedroom in the main house.

After tossing and turning in bed for nearly an hour Meredith didn't know what to do to fall asleep. She had taken a hot lavender bubble bath, which always relaxed her. She had put on Derek's sweatpants and her Dartmouth t-shirt and curled up with his pillow, none of it was helping.

'_Damn it, I can't sleep without him.'_

She got out of bed put her slippers on and went downstairs to see if some tea would help put her to sleep.

She walked into the kitchen to find Derek's mom there already making some tea.

"Trish, what are you doing up?"

"Oh, I'm sorry dear I didn't mean to go through your stuff. I just couldn't sleep."

"Don't worry about going through stuff, I'm just glad you could find it, I can never find anything in this kitchen. Seems like we have the same problem, I can't sleep either."

"Nervous?"

"Oh no not at all, it's just…I can't sleep without Derek. I know that is so pathetic right, but I don't know I just…I can't."

"It's not pathetic at all. Secret between us, that's why I can't sleep either…I haven't slept without my husband in nearly thirty-five years, you feel empty, I understand."

After a few minutes of silence, Derek's mom finally spoke.

"Thank you." She said to Meredith giving her a big smile.

"I'm sorry?" Meredith asked a little confused.

"Thank you…for bringing my son back to us." After seeing Meredith's confused look she continued, "You let him be the man that he is. I've never seen him this happy, never. He loves you. He loves you like he's never loved anyone before."

"This is all so surreal, you know…I feel like any minute I am going to wake up and all of this is going to be gone; this house, this day, our perfect wedding, our love. It's all part of the dream I never thought would actually come true. And it scares me…you know, it's just…I've lost him before, I don't want to wake up to find that I never really had him. And I am not having second thoughts…I would never have second thoughts, not with Derek. I love him so much; I can't imagine my life with anyone else."

"Oh Meredith, this is all real, every single last bit of it, this house, the unforgettable moments you will share together tomorrow, the children you will have, the life you will experience together, and nothing is more real than the love you share. And I promise you that if you ever wake up and find he's not there I will personally kick his ass for you." Meredith giggled. "But you have nothing to worry about, you are his world and the love between you two is so incredibly strong. You have the kind of love that nothing comes between; you have the kind of love that people long for, the kind of love that rarely exists today."

Meredith smiled at the woman that sat in front of her. She knew that Trish was right, they had a love that was incredibly strong, they had made it through a hell of a lot over the last four years and there were defiantly going to be hard times in the future, but they would be able to make it through anything, she had no doubt. They sat in silence taking in each other's thoughts, and then exhaustion began to set in.

"I think we need to head to bed, you have a big day tomorrow and I hear we have to be up early to set up your perfect day."

"Hmm, yea…guess I need to get my beauty sleep, wouldn't want to disappoint anyone tomorrow night."

"Oh, honey you could never disappoint anyone and you will be absolutely gorgeous tomorrow. Let's go to bed." Trish grabbed Meredith's hand and walked her upstairs and tucked her in to bed.

"You go to bed so you can wake up to live your dream. Come get me if you need anything, goodnight." Trish leaned over and kissed Meredith on the forehead and left the room closing the door behind her.

Meredith smiled and grabbed Derek's pillow to curl up with and quickly fell asleep. This was the last night she would be going to bed as Meredith Grey and nothing made her happier. She loved being a Grey, she had been one for twenty eight years, but the thought of being a Shepherd made her even happier. In eight hours she would be waking up to live happily ever after.

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**AN: So I hope you guys like this so far, sorry it was really lame I know. I toyed with the ideas of a bachelorette party or just jumping right into the wedding, but I really like the opening scene with Derek and Meredith at the bar. I am not sure when I will be able to post next I will try my hardest to do it soon, I have a fabulous idea for the wedding.**

**As far as tonight's episode, I thought it was really really good!! I know we didn't get a whole lot of MerDer but what we did get I was really happy with, I kind of wish we had gotten to hear the stories from Mer's past. And the whole Izzie/Denny thing is a little weird to me.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Don't own any of it**

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Chapter 2

_Growing up sucks. Not all kisses are __magic__, and most boys never live up to your expectations, but there are those times when everything…love, romance, relationships, when they all fall together perfectly and life becomes incredible.__ People can spend their entire lives looking for the right time for everything to fall into place, but…unfortunately, it rarely happens. And to those few who do get to experience it…well, it's a once in a lifetime opportunity. _

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After watching Meredith leave Joe's, Derek got in his car and made his way to Mark's apartment. The night proved to be pretty uneventful, just some beer and lots of stories. He had awakened this morning with a smile on his face. This was the day that he had dreamed of for years now. He was marrying the woman of his dreams. He knew the very first time that he saw her that he wanted a lifetime with her. She had been exactly what he needed, a breath of fresh air, as he had put it nearly three years ago.

Derek was brought out of his thoughts by the buzzing of his cell phone; he smiled when he looked at the caller id.

"Good morning Mom."

"Good morning honey, how are you feeling?"

"Wonderful."

"That's great honey. I was just calling to let you know that our little plan went off without a hitch."

"That's great; she didn't wake up or anything?"

"Didn't even budge; she was so exhausted last night, I think she fell asleep the second I put her to bed." Trish giggled.

"You put her to bed?"

"Yea, she came downstairs around eleven and I happened to be in here. We had some tea and talked for a little bit and then I insisted she go to sleep."

"That doesn't sound like Mer, she never has problems going to sleep." He replied with a hint of concern.

"She does when you're not here. She loves you, it is so obvious. You found a great girl Derek, I am so proud of you."

"Thanks Mom, I'm proud of myself too. So how is everything going there? Did everything get there ok?"

"Everything is perfect. The tents got here on time and they have been setting them up, I think they are actually almost done with that. The tables and chairs are supposed to arrive in half an hour, and the florist is supposed to get here around four I think. Your sisters are down there now taking care of things and I am going down with Meredith around eleven to see how things are going."

"Sounds perfect; I can't wait to see it all put together."

"It really is a fabulous idea I don't know how the two of you came up with it?"

"You'll have to ask Mer about that one."

"I'll do that, well honey I will let you go. I love you."

"I love you too Mom, I'll see you in a few hours."

"Ok darling, bye."

"Bye."

After hanging up with his mom, Derek immediately dialed Meredith's cell phone. After a few rings there was an answer.

"Hello?" she answered sleepily.

"Good morning beautiful. Did I wake you?"

"Mmm, good morning and yes you did, but its ok I need to get up anyways."

"And why do you need to get up, you are supposed to be relaxing."

"I need to get up because it's…" she stopped turning to look at the clock.

"Mer…"

"Uh…it's nine o'clock, why the hell is it so…" she stopped again.

"Mer…"

"Oh my God, Derek…"

She sat up in bed looking around the room. The drapes were pulled closed to make the room dark, but the room was full of candles which set off a romantic glow. She looked down to notice that the bed was covered in red rose petals and to her left was a vase which had two dozen red roses in it.

"Do you like it?" his deep voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Oh my God…its…its perfect, how did you do this?"

"A little help from my mom, but listen I am going to let you continue to explore our room and I have a few errands to run before I get there." After a moment of silence, he spoke up, "Mer, you still there?"

"Yea, I'm still here…it's just…this, it's so amazing…you are so amazing."

"I'm glad you like it. I'll see you in a few hours alright?"

"I can't wait."

"Me either."

They sat in silence for only a few seconds reveling in the fact that in less than nine hours they would be husband and wife.

"Der…"

"Yea baby?"

"I love you so much and thank you for this."

"You are very welcome. I love you too, bye sweetheart."

"Bye."

After hanging up with Derek, she sat in bed just a little longer taking in all that he had done for her. This was amazing, never had she dreamed of someone doing something like this for her. She smiled leaning over to the night stand to smell the beautiful flowers which sat next to her. Next to the flowers was an envelope with her name written on it. She opened it not expecting to find what she did.

_Meredith,_

_I never thought it was possible to love someone as much as I love you. I thought that feelings like these only existed in fairy tales. But they do truly exist and I have been so incredibly blessed to find them with you. For the first time in my life I have a purpose, a reason to live._

_My life changed forever that night at Joe's. For the first time in a long time I found somebody who has allowed me to be me. You have helped me to open up my heart and trust again, and to smile and be happier than I ever thought possible._

_I am so in love with you, there isn't a minute that goes by that I'm not thinking about you. I love every little thing about you, your sexy smile, the sound of your laugh, the magic in your eyes. I love your gentle touch and the warmth I feel when I am around you. I love dreaming about you. I love discovering you and letting go with you. I love each and every once in a lifetime moment I have and have yet to share with you._

_There is no doubt in my mind that you will be the most beautiful bride that the world has ever seen. I can't wait to be your husband and start our wonderful lives together. I love you Mrs. Shepherd. I will see you tonight._

_Love Always,_

_Derek_

She could feel the stinging of tears in the back of her eyes. Nobody had ever loved her like this and she had certainly never expected to find someone like him. Derek was…well, he was a miracle in her eyes; men like him have rarely ever existed. As Denny had so blatantly pointed out a year ago, _"he still believes in true love and magic and soul mates. He's still an optimist!"_

'_How did I get so lucky?'_ she thought to herself. She folded the letter, put it back in the envelope and set it on the night stand. She got out of bed, careful not to disrupt the rose petals; smiled to herself again and left the bedroom to walk downstairs.

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As she made her way downstairs the aroma of food filled the air causing her stomach to growl out loud. It seemed as though Izzie had found her way into the kitchen and made everybody breakfast. When she entered the kitchen she was shocked by the amount of food that lay in front of her. There were pancakes and waffles, eggs, bacon and sausage, all kinds of fruit and a huge variety of beverages including juices, teas and coffee.

"Wow Iz you really went all out didn't you?" Meredith laughed as she walked over to the coffee pot to pour herself a cup.

"Mer…oh my God you're awake and it's your wedding day. Are you nervous? You want something to eat? There's plenty here." She rambled off.

"Iz, are you turning into a Grey?" she laughed "And thank you for breakfast it all looks so delicious and I am starving!" she said as she grabbed a plate.

"Oh Meredith, you're up. How did you sleep?" Trish said as she entered the kitchen.

"Wonderfully, but my wakeup call was even better, thank you."

"I don't know why you are thanking me, it was all Derek's idea, I just set it up."

"What are you guys talking about?" Izzie questioned.

"Iz you have to go look at my room."

Izzie ran out of the kitchen and upstairs. A few minutes later they heard her screaming followed by her footsteps coming back down.

"Oh my God, that is so romantic. He did that for you…why the hell can't there be more guys like him in this world?"

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After breakfast Meredith ran upstairs to take a quick shower before her and Trish were supposed to meet everyone. She had just finished getting dressed when she heard a knock at her door. She opened the door to reveal Trish standing on the other side.

"I'm almost ready to go." She said as she walked back into the bathroom.

"No rush dear I just wanted to give you something before we met up with everyone else."

Meredith walked back into the bedroom and noticed that Trish was holding a square box. She gasped as Trish opened the box to reveal a diamond necklace. She had never seen anything so gorgeous, this was the kind of necklace that only stars wore.

"I want you to have this, to wear it today. It was my grandmother's and has been in my family ever since. It's a Shepherd tradition to wear this on her wedding day."

"Oh my gosh…but, but I'm not a Shepherd yet."

"Oh Meredith you have been a Shepherd since the day my son fell in love with you." Trish replied handing the box to Meredith.

"It is so…gorgeous…Thank you, I would be honored to wear it." She said giving her future mother in law a hug.

"Now what do you say we head down there so that we can make sure everything is just the way you want it." Trish said holding her hand out to Meredith. "I understand there is a story behind this whole extravagant set up of yours."

"Yea, there is, but I'll tell you when we get down there because I know the girls will want to hear about it too."

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"What do you say we drive down there, it's a far walk and besides its cold." Meredith said grabbing the keys to her car.

She walked to the front door and gasped as she opened it.

"It's the first snow of the year." Meredith smiled.

"It's perfect for this romantic occasion."

"Yea, it is." Meredith replied as a single tear fell down her cheek. Her dream really was coming true; this day was turning out exactly how she wanted it too, down to every detail.

They got in the car and Meredith drove them to the opposite end of their land. They both smiled when they pulled up. The sight in front of them was breath taking. This is where they were getting married, this is where all their dreams were going to come true, this is where their happily ever after began.

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**AN: Sorry that this took me so long to post, I hope to have more posted by tomorrow and I promise the wedding is coming!! Just bear with me it will all be worth it (I hope!) Please let me know what you think of it so far, which in other words means please please please review!!!**

**I hope you all liked tonight's episode…I loved it!! I feel like its getting back into the swing of things!! Oh and btw can I just say I love the sentimental Mark!!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Don't own any of it**

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Chapter 3

_Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our __breath__away__._

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So far today had been a day that her breath had been taken away numerous times and she was sure that that wasn't going to stop any time soon. Trish and Meredith got out of the car and walked towards one of the tents.

'_It is so cold out here; I can't believe that they are going to get married outside in the middle of the winter in Seattle.'_ Trish thought to herself, but she wasn't going to say anything. This was her son's and future daughter's day, if this is the way they wanted to get married then this was the way it was going to happen.

They walked inside the tent and to Trish's surprise it was quite warm.

"Wow, it's so warm in here." Trish stated.

"Yea, I would hope so…the tents are insulated and have built in heaters. They are supposed to block out the cold." Meredith replied with a smile on her face. This was better than she had expected.

Across the room Christina, Callie and Lexie were working on the altar and Derek's sisters and Izzie were setting up the chairs.

"What do we need to do?" Derek's mom asked.

"Uh…candles." Meredith replied.

"More candles? What is it with you two and candles?" Trish laughed as she followed Meredith over to some boxes. She opened one box to reveal what must have been one hundred candles and there were six boxes of them. There were also six boxes of stands. "What are we doing with all of these?"

"We are going to line the walls with them." Meredith smiled.

"That's a lot of candles."

"Yea well we will need them all. You'll see, it's kind of going to be a surprise."

Meredith and Trish spent nearly two and a half hours setting up the candles. By two o'clock they all decided they had done as much as possible, the rest was up to the florist.

"Oh Meredith this is such an amazing idea…how ever did you come up with it?" Derek's younger sister Lacy asked as she and Derek's other sister came towards them.

"Uh funny story actually," Meredith replied

"Ah, the story," Meredith gave Trish a confused look, "Derek told me there was a story behind this."

"Uh well, we had this fight about a year ago, it was the day that Christina got married…before we left for the church Derek pulled me aside and told me that I was the love of his life and that he was in this for the long haul and I just…I froze, I was so scared of commitment and he knew that…so he asked me if I wasn't in it to put him out of his misery and end it…I just, I couldn't end it…I loved him too much. So we got through the ceremony and we talked afterwards during the reception, but then we decided to go our separate ways for the night…I got home and I, I just couldn't stay away from him, I had to see him…so I drove out here praying he would be here and that we could talk and work through this, but I got here and he wasn't here…I kept trying to call his cell phone but there was never an answer. So I decided that I needed a way to show him that I was committed, that I was in this for the long haul too…so I built a house, our house, out of candles and I waited till he got back and, well…here we are."

"You built a house out of candles?" Kathleen asked.

"Yea and I divided it up into rooms; our kitchen, the living room, and the room where our kids would play…I wanted him to know that I wanted everything that he wanted."

"That is so romantic." The Shepherd sisters said in awe at the thought of a house built of candles.

"Yea your McDreamy brother and Mer seem to have this fascination with candles…its weird if you ask me and its very un-Mer like." Christina tossed in.

Derek's family looked at Christina wondering what she was talking about. Un-Mer like? Meredith knew exactly what they were thinking; since she had met them she had been a bright and shiny person. They didn't know her as the dark and twisty Meredith like her friends did. And the whole house of candles was something dark and twisty Meredith never would have done. But Derek…well he was Derek. He brought out the good in her, he was the reason she was now bright and shiny, and she had no problem with it.

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After spending the afternoon doing nothing but relaxing, Meredith decided it was time to get ready. Karoline, the hairstylist, and a few of her colleagues, arrived at the house around three o'clock to begin a massive amount of updos. Meredith had decided on having her hair done half up half down. She wanted the top half to be nothing but lots and lots of curls and the tiara she had gotten of course. And the bottom half was going to be big corkscrew like curls.

Karoline finished her hair around 5:15 which meant in about an hour she would be driving down to the tent to walk down the aisle to the man of her dreams. She wasn't nervous at all.

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At the same time that Meredith was finishing with her hair Derek and Mark were walking into the tent for the first time. They stood at the entrance of the tent marveled by the sight in front of them. The florist had done a wonderful job with decorating. Each row of chairs had a bundle of flowers hanging on the ending chair. And the altar, there were no words to describe it. There were five large bouquets of mixed flowers all white and red and there must have been one hundred candles just on the altar alone. Looking around the room, Derek was very impressed with the way everything was coming together. It was then that Mark noticed all the candles.

"What's with the candles?"

"You'll see."

They went back to the trailer to finish getting ready; in thirty minutes they had to be back to the tent to start seating people. Derek finished getting ready quickly and stepped outside for a moment. This was the day he had been looking forward to for the past four years. He couldn't remember a time when he had been so happy. And to think nearly a year ago he was asking her to put him out of his misery and end it. Yet he knew that she loved him too much to just walk away. They had grown so much over the last year, not only independently, but as a couple as well. They were about to make all their dreams come true.

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**AN: Once again I am so sorry that I take forever to write updates, my life has been a little on the hectic side with it being so close to the end of the semester!! But I truly hope you all enjoyed this chapter, just a little filler before the wedding!!**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Ok just wanted to give some definitions of somethings in this chapter (I'm not sure if everyone is into wedding as much as I am) stark white is as white as white can get, semi-cathedral (chapel) length train is a train that extends approximately 5 ft from the waist and ruched means tightly gathered material which creates pleats in the fabric. It's a really pretty effect!! Hope you like please review!!**

**Disclaimer: Don't own any of it!! The song belongs to Rascal Flatts.**

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Chapter 4

_True love surpasses everyone's understandings. It expresses loyalty and dreams only the highest dreams. True love hurts but learns how to mend; it cries but washes away the pain. True love turns ignorant boys into mature men and softens the hearts of young women. True love offers forgiveness and never lies. It loves a person through everything, even the white hair. And most of all…true love is love that lasts until the end of time. _

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It felt so surreal, so magnificent, so perfect. There she stood staring at herself in the mirror. The reflection of a woman in a floor length stark white gown with a semi-cathedral length train was looking back at her. The necklace that Derek's mom had given her earlier in the day made the dress even more elegant. Her hair and makeup were perfect, just the way she had imagined. She had always dreamed of this but had never expected it to actually happen. When she was younger she believed in Prince Charming coming to rescue the princess from the evil mother, but that had soon faded. Her evil mother made sure that those thoughts were trampled. From the time she started dating she believed her mom, there was no such thing as a good man, they were all out for one thing. So she got to the point of where her career was her life, just like her mother. But then Derek came along and made her once again believe in Prince Charming, and he had rescued her from so many things including her evil mother.

"Mer, you are absolutely gorgeous, Derek is going to fall in love with you all over again."

Meredith turned around to see Izzie walking into her bedroom. She smiled as she noticed Izzie's dress. She remembered back to the day that she, Izzie and Christina had gone dress shopping. Color had never been an issue, she decided right away that she wanted some shade of indigo, for two reasons, it was Derek's favorite color and it matched his eyes. However, style was a whole different ball game. Her bridesmaids all had different body types and there hadn't been a style that looked good on all of them, so she decided to let them get whatever style they wanted. Christina, being the matron of honor, decided on a satin spaghetti strap mermaid style dress with a ruched bust. Izzie, Lexie and Callie all decided on satin strapless a-line dresses with a ruched bust as well.

"You look great Iz and I love that color on you."

"Are you nervous at all?"

"Not at all…a little overwhelmed maybe…in thirty minutes I am going to be Dr. Mrs. Derek Shepherd. I never thought this day would come."

"But it did…I am so happy for you, you deserve all of this."

Izzie walked up to Meredith pulling her into a hug.

"Thanks Iz…for everything."

"Are you ready to…oh my God Mer, you are…I can't even find words…stunning doesn't even begin to describe you. You are going to give my brother a heart attack the moment he sees you." Kathleen said.

"Oh, don't be ridiculous…but thank you." Meredith blushed a little at the compliment.

"Are you ready, if we don't get you down there, my brother is going to kill me."

"Yea…let's go."

Kathleen and Izzie helped Meredith downstairs to the rest of the women where she was welcomed by an overwhelming number of compliments. After getting her coat on, she made her way over to the front door taking one last look around before she left. When she returned she would be Mrs. Shepherd, just the thought of that brought a smile to her face. She opened the door and was amazed by what she saw, it was now 6:10 and was nearly dark and the falling snow was gorgeous.

"It's perfect weather." She said aloud, smiling to herself.

"Mer, its freaking snowing and you are having your wedding outside. How can this be perfect weather?" Christina asked.

"This is just how we planned it; we were hoping it would snow. And the wedding is not outside, I mean technically yes, but we are in an insulated tent…quit your bitchin."

***********************************

Derek stood at the front of the room watching all their family and friends be seated; there must have been nearly one hundred and fifty people. He was ready, he had been ready, he couldn't remember a time in the last four years where he hadn't wanted to spend the rest of his life with Meredith. And now they were making it official in front of everyone who loved them.

Mark made his way to the front of the room.

"Ten minutes man…you ready?"

"I've been ready."

"Place looks great, even though I still don't understand the candles, I mean with all the lights in here you don't even really know they are there, what's the point?"

"I can't tell you, you will have to wait and see like everyone else."

The next few minutes felt like an eternity to both Derek and Meredith. Within minutes they both heard the music start playing for the mothers to be seated. Derek smiled as he saw his mother walking down the aisle to her seat; she caught his eye and smiled back at him, blowing him a kiss before she sat. The music continued to play even after Trish had been seated. Meredith had wanted it that way; even though her mother was no longer with her she liked to believe that her mother would have been here.

After a moment of silence another song began to play and Callie began to walk down the aisle, followed by Lexie then Izzie. Christina began to walk down once Izzie was half way down the aisle, but not before turning around to give Meredith one last smile.

This was it, Derek marveled in the idea that he and Meredith were just moments away from being husband and wife. Once the bridal party made their way to their spots the music continued playing for a minute.

"Would everyone please stand for the bride." The preacher announced.

Everyone stood and turned to the back of the room.

_When you light those candles,  
Up there on that mantel setting the mood  
Well, I just lie there starring silently preparing to love on you_

Well I can feel the heat from across the room  
Ain't it wild what a little flame can make you want to do

Suddenly all the lights turned off and nothing was left, but the glow of all the candles. Everyone looked around in surprise, but Derek smiled as his eyes landed on Meredith beginning her walk down the aisle, she was truly breathtaking.

_I melt  
Every time you look at me that way  
It never fails any time any place  
This burn in me is the coolest thing that I've ever felt  
I melt _

Her eyes locked with his immediately as a smile spread across her face. Everything had worked perfectly; they had decided a while ago that they wanted to get married by candle light, at night, in the middle of winter, hoping that it would snow. It seemed as if fate was on their side because all of it was happening. __

Don't know how you do it  
I love the way I lose it every time  
What's even better is knowing that forever your all mine  
The closer you get the more my body aches  
One little stare from you is all it takes

I melt  
Every time you look at me that way  
It never fails any time any place  
This burn in me is the coolest thing that I've ever felt  
I melt

_I melt  
Every time you look at me that way  
It never fails any time any place  
This burn in me is the coolest thing that I've ever felt  
I melt_

As Meredith made her way to the altar she never once took her eyes off of Derek. Once she reached only inches away from him he took her hand and mouthed the word beautiful.__

Every time you look at me that way  
I melt, I melt 

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to share with Derek and Meredith a very important moment in their lives. In the year's they have been together, their love and understanding of each other has grown and matured, and now they have decided to live their lives together as husband and wife. Derek and Meredith, we are here not only to witness your commitment to each other, but to wish you happiness in your future life together. Marriage is founded on sincerity and understanding which leads to tolerance, confidence and trust. We believe that those qualities which have attracted you both to each other can be best developed during a life spent together. A happy marriage will enable you to establish a home with love and stability where your family and friends will always be welcome."

The room fell silent as Izzie made her way to the microphone. Before speaking she looked to Derek and Meredith and smiled.

"Derek and Meredith, if you could please take each other's hands,"

Meredith smiled up to Derek before grabbing his hands. He willingly grabbed them rubbing his thumb over her knuckles while Izzie spoke.

"These are the hands of your best friend, young and strong and full of love for you, that are holding yours on your wedding day, as you promise to love each other today, tomorrow, and forever. These are the hands that will work alongside yours, as together you build your future. These are the hands that will passionately love you and cherish you through the years, and with the slightest touch, will comfort you like no other. These are the hands that will hold you when fear or grief fills your mind. These are the hands that will countless times wipe the tears from your eyes; tears of sorrow, and tears of joy. These are the hands that will tenderly hold your children. These are the hands that will help you to hold your family as one. These are the hands that will give you strength when you need it. And lastly, these are the hands that even when wrinkled and aged, will still be reaching for yours, still giving you the same unspoken tenderness with just a touch."

Izzie walked back to her spot as the preacher spoke again.

"Marriage is the essence of human relationships. It challenges us to be of one accord without abandoning the truth of our individuality. It challenges us to recognize ourselves in one another, and to admire and respect each other while walking side-by-side, heading in the same direction.

Do not just be married or in love, but let your marriage be an active process of loving each other.  
Let your love be an inspiration to others to reach for what is good within all of us. May your love be so abundant that you have plenty to share with the rest of us as well.

Derek and Meredith, it is your love that has brought us together here today. December 16, will always have special meaning for you as the day you vowed to love each other in all ways, always.

Each year when you come upon your anniversary, I encourage you to rededicate yourselves to the vows you make here today. Take stock of where you are in your marriage and how you are doing as partners. Express your gratitude to each other for the ways you have loved and supported one another, and forgive yourselves and each other for any disagreements that have come between you.

Show each other that you can be trusted and counted on for comfort when facing difficult times, and celebrate abundantly the successes and joys life brings your way. Let your love lead the way and be more important than anything else. May your love grow deeper and sweeter with each passing day…we will now exchange vows.

Derek was the first to speak; he grabbed a hold of her hand and looked her directly in the eyes.

"Meredith, I've been trying to remember when I realized that I was in love with you. And I can't…because the truth is I've always been in love with you. There was a time when you wanted to know who I was, now you do, you know everything about me and you love me just the same. It takes a very extraordinary woman to do that and you, Meredith, are that woman…you are the love of my life, the candle that lights my world, the fire that heats my soul…you are my lover, my best friend, my happily ever after…so today, and all the days of our lives, I give you my heart, my whole life."

Meredith was overcome by the beautiful words; she gave herself a second before speaking.

"How am I seriously supposed to follow that?" she said giggling which caused everyone else to laugh. Taking a deep breath she continued.

"Ok, here it goes…Derek, I never believed in the words true love or happily ever after until I met you. You did something no one has ever been able to do…you turned my dark and twisty world into a bright and shiny place I used to only dream of visiting…our story is one that people spend a lifetime chasing after, one that very few get to experience. One where love is unconditional, one where the princess gets her knight in shining whatever," she giggled, "a story where we live out our happily ever after…I love you Derek, I am so in love with you…you are my saving grace, my soul mate, my dream come true. On this perfect night and every single night from now till the end of time I give you my heart, my whole life."

After she finished they both had tears streaming down their faces and they were pretty sure that everyone else did too. The preacher turned to Christina and Mark and asked for the rings; giving Derek his first.

"Meredith, I give you this ring as a token of my love and devotion to you. I pledge to you all that I am and all that I will ever be as your husband. With this ring, I gladly marry you and join my life to yours."

The preacher then handed Meredith her ring.

"Derek, I give you this ring as a token of my love and devotion to you. I pledge to you all that I am and all that I will ever be as your wife. With this ring, I gladly marry you and join my life to yours."

Mark made his way to the microphone.

"Love is always patient and kind. It is never jealous. Love is never boastful or conceited, it is never rude or selfish, it does not take offense and is not resentful. Love takes no pleasure in other people's faults, but delights in the truth. It is always ready to excuse, to trust, to hope. It is always ready to endure whatever comes. True love does not come to an end."

"Derek and Meredith, as you live and love throughout the years, may you realize all the joy that marriage can bring, and know that all your days have been happier because you have shared them with each other." The preacher stated after Mark returned to his spot. "You have declared before all of us that you will live together in marriage. You have made special promises to each other, which have been symbolized by the joining of hands, taking of vows, and giving and receiving of two rings. By the power vested in my by the State of Washington, I know pronounce you husband and wife…you may kiss the bride."

Derek tilted his head and gave her his best McDreamy look before taking her face in his hands and kissing her passionately. To them it felt like this was the first time they had ever kissed, there was so much electricity, so much want and need, so much love. They tore apart completely breathless.

"I love you," he said before giving her another quick kiss on the lips.

"I love you too."

"Ladies and Gentlemen, it is my pleasure to present to you Mr. and Mrs. Derek Shepherd."

Her heart fluttered as the sound of the preacher's last statement; she was now Mrs. Derek Shepherd. They had done it, they were married and it had been even more perfect then they had expected. Before she knew it she was standing outside with her husband, her heart fluttered again, she didn't even remember walking back down the aisle.

"You are so beautiful Mrs. Shepherd…I am not going to be able to take my eyes off of you tonight."

"Good that's how it is supposed to be." She said leaning up to kiss him, "I love you."

"I love you too."

As the wedding party made their way back down the aisle the new couple received a number of congratulatory comments before deciding that they wanted to head to the trailer to get out of the cold before returning back to the tent for pictures.

"Ah…we're married." She screamed as she walked into the trailer.

"I know…amazing isn't it." He replied quickly finding her waste and pulling her closer to him.

"Yea." She said mesmerized by the deep blue of his eyes.

After a few minutes of reveling in the fact that they were now married they decided to head back to the tent for pictures. Before opening the door he gave her one quick kiss and together hand in hand they walked back to the tent, as a married couple.

******************************************

**AN: So now that I finally got the wedding chapter up what did you all think?? I really hoped that you like it!!! ****Sorry it's so long, but it's the wedding so ya'll can deal!! And the whole Mr. and Mrs. Shepherd thing I wasn't big on Dr. and Dr. Mrs. Shepherd so that's why you got what you got. And once again I apologize for being so late in posting this, I promise I will get better once school is out!! Hope you all had a wonderful holiday yesterday…and please please please REVIEW!!! I love them!!**


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